Senior Elastic Engineer (Scott AFB)

Zachary Piper Solutions is seeking an experienced Senior Elastic Engineer to support a high-visibility federal modernization effort focused on migrating enterprise security logging and observability platforms from Splunk to Elastic. This position will support mission-critical infrastructure at Scott Air Force Base, IL, where the selected engineer will lead Elastic architecture, Kubernetes deployments, and custom data ingestion solutions within a secure DoD environment. The ideal candidate will have deep expertise with the Elastic Stack, Kubernetes/ECK deployments, and designing scalable, production-grade logging and security platforms., Design, deploy, and maintain enterprise Elastic Stack environments supporting security logging, search, and observability. Lead migration efforts from Splunk to Elastic while ensuring minimal operational disruption. Build and implement custom data ingestion pipelines for enterprise security and operational data. Configure and manage Index Lifecycle Management (ILM) policies and data retention strategies. Deploy and administer Elastic Cloud on Kubernetes (ECK) environments using Kubernetes operators. Optimize Elastic cluster performance, scalability, reliability, and availability across production environments. Troubleshoot complex Elastic infrastructure, Kubernetes, and distributed system issues. Support security-focused logging, SIEM integrations, and enterprise observability initiatives. Develop automation and operational best practices for Elastic platform administration. Maintain technical documentation, deployment standards, and operational procedures.

7+ years of experience supporting Elastic engineering, platform engineering, Site Reliability Engineering (SRE), or infrastructure engineering. Strong hands-on experience designing and administering enterprise Elastic Stack environments. Experience building custom data ingestion pipelines and managing large-scale logging platforms. Advanced Kubernetes experience with Elastic Cloud on Kubernetes (ECK) deployments preferred. Experience troubleshooting complex Elastic architectures and distributed environments. Ability to work onsite at Scott Air Force Base, IL. Active Secret Clearance required (Interim Secret or Interim Top Secret may be considered).

Nice-to-Haves Experience leading Splunk-to-Elastic migration projects. Experience supporting SIEM, security logging, and enterprise observability platforms. Familiarity with Kubernetes operators and containerized infrastructure. Experience supporting DoD, federal, or classified environments. Elastic certifications (Engineer, Security, or Observability).

Soft Skills Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities. Ability to independently design and implement complex Elastic solutions. Comfortable working in fast-paced, mission-critical environments. Excellent communication and collaboration skills across engineering and government stakeholders. Self-motivated with the ability to work independently while supporting a highly technical team.

Compensation: $190,000-$230,000 annually. Fully funded, long-term federal engagement supporting a major enterprise modernization initiative. Opportunity to lead a high-impact Splunk-to-Elastic migration for a mission-critical DoD customer. Relocation assistance available (approximately $5,000+)